Waking Up
by DoubleDevii
Summary: 'Be wary of the shadows. The darkness will tear at you and try to swallow you, but you can fight it- I know you all can.' After the battle with infamous BloodClan, all seems peaceful for the Clan cats of the forest. But when a strange cat alerts the Clan's of an oncoming storm, all hope seems lost. How can they trust themselves- much less the cats that were sent to save them all?
1. Prologue

**A/N: Well, hello all! This is the first fanfiction on my new FF account, and I am so excited to get it started! I haven't written any sort of fanfiction (or any at all for YuGiOh) in a while, so you'll have to bear with me here. I really hope you all enjoy it, and I would love nothing more to get some feedback on how I'm doing! Critique is always welcomed, and if lovely people could give me some help on getting the characters personalities right, that would be awesome! 3 Enjoy!**

**Prologue **

Bright rays of sun light shone through the leafless trees as Firestar padded at a steady pace towards the Fourtrees where he was told to meet the other clan leaders. A fresh layer of snow covered the ground, and it crunched uncomfortably underneath the ginger tom's paws as he maneuvered through the familiar scenery. It had been so frigid lately, and the clan was lucky to finally have a day of sunlight so that their patrols could catch more of the prey that was out in the open to take in the sunshine.

Firestar paused at the top of the hill that overlooked the clearing, and his breath caught in his throat as he recalled the battle that took place there no more than three moons ago. It was a tragic time, the only time in history where the Four Clans of the forest came together to battle against the deadliest enemy any of them have ever met; BloodClan, a ruthless group of cats who were led by their blood thirsty leader, Scourge. It was the battle where he lost the first of his nine lives, and many of his clan mates, including his deputy.

'_Whitestorm…_' The thought of his old teacher and friend caused a pain to jab at his heart, and Firestar couldn't help but bow his head mournfully. He remembered seeing the crumpled body of his former deputy on the ground as the white-furred tom still managed to smile up at his leader. He knew that Whitestorm was right, and that Greystripe would be a wonderful deputy to his Clan, despite his former relations with Riverclan.

Inhaling a sharp breath, the leader raced down the hill and into the frosty clearing below. In the center sat the three other leaders; Tallstar of WindClan, Leopardstar of RiverClan, and the newest leader, Blackstar of ShadowClan.

Tallstar gave a warming smile as Firestar padded towards them, glad to see his fellow leader and friend once more. Leopardstar looked up from a conversation with the ShadowClan leader and gave a small nod towards the ginger tom, while Blackstar gave a soft snort.

"Finally decided to join us have you?" he inquired in a curt tone, his tail lashing lightly. Firestar was used to the jibs from ShadowClan cats, Blackstar in particular. The large tomcat was never too fond of the former kittypet, and still threw him some taunts now and again.

"Hello, Blackstar, a pleasure as usual," Firestar meowed in a calm tone, looking up to stare at the other leaders in question, "Do any of you have any clue why we were called here?" They all shook their heads, only Tallstar speaking up.

"No. Our medicine cat's told us to meet here, so that StarClan could speak to us personally." he rasped, his ear flicking nervously. All four of them exchanged confused glances, not sure what they were supposed to do now. A voice rang out through the clearing, startling all of them.

"You all are here, very good."

Their heads shot up, and they stared at the top of the Highrock, where two starry figures sat. Firestar immediately recognized one of them as Bluestar, his mentor and former leader. The grey-blue she cat seemed to be looking at only him, a welcoming look in her eyes. The cat next to her, however, Firestar didn't recognize. He was a small grey-brown tom with a pair of deep blue eyes and a lighter brown underbelly. He was examining each and every leader with an un-nerving glint in his eyes, his frightening gaze pausing on Firestar momentarily. He ignored the urge to flinch away and duck his head; instead Firestar stared back with a stubborn determination. An amused smile seemed to flicker on the strange tom's lips, but only for a brief moment before he looked back at Bluestar.

The she cat hesitated for several heartbeats, choosing her words carefully, the same as when she was living.

"You have been through hard times," she began carefully, "As has StarClan. I and the rest of us would love nothing more to fight for our Clans' once more, but as you all know, we cannot prevent or assist with the troubles that occur with the living. We can only foresee and do our best to warn you about them. "

"We have seen something that is beyond our reach-"

There were cries of disbelief and shock from all four leaders.

"-and that is why we have gathered you here. I would like to introduce you to someone…" She nodded towards the mysterious tom-cat, who rose to his paws to stand next to Bluestar. His deep blue eyes seemed to hold no emotion as they gazed down at the cats below, his expression ice cold.

"Greetings, my name is Shadi. As Bluestar has already said, there is a storm coming; one that you cannot handle by yourselves. I am not of StarClan, I watch over a different kind then your own," he meowed in an eerily steady, yet somewhat quiet tone. Confusion struck Firestar, a different kind then them? What could that possibly mean? "So, I have decided to send some of my own to assist you in the battle to come. I trust them deeply, and confident that they will be able to fend off the foes who dare to threaten the Clans."

"And how will we know who these cats are?" Tallstar called out, his gaze clouded by confusion. Shadi turned to look at the older tom, his expression stoic.

"You will know when you see them," he answered simply, his ear flickering as if someone leaned over to whisper to him, and he paused. Bluestar glanced over at him, her face holding concern. Several heartbeats that felt like moons passed, "I'm afraid my time here is over. But I have one last warning for you all; be wary of the shadows. The darkness will tear at you and try to swallow you, but you can fight it- I know you all can."

The image of the two cats atop the boulder flickered momentarily, and then both figures were gone as fast as they had appeared. A heavy silence hung over the cats, confusion, and perhaps a hint of fear, clung to their pelts like brambles that dug into their skin. No one spoke, until finally Leopardstar's voice rang out through the clearing.

"Well….now what?" she asked, the RiverClan leader's voice abnormally small. She feared for the fact that danger lurked around the corner, just after she managed to pick up the pieces of her Clan that was torn apart. Firestar couldn't help but feel a twinge of sympathy in his heart as he lifted his head to meet her gaze.

"Now we can only wait. Wait, and pray to StarClan that they can shine their light on us, so that we may all be safe from this supposed darkness that lurks in the forest."


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

"_Landlord._"

Ryou gave a soft groan, his head reeling in pain as he gradually came to, the muttering of an all too familiar spirit in his ear. His eyes stayed clenched tightly shut, not wanting to see the havoc Bakura had wreaked while the Spirit had left him helpless, and totally unaware. The pale-haired boy couldn't recall a thing about the evening before, which was _never_ a good thing in his case. He could only assume that the Spirit within the Millennium Ring got into something particularly violent, and as usual, left it up to his generous host to clean up his mess for him- something that the boy was not too particularly fond of doing.

"No. I'm not dealing with this right now," he mumbled, his ears flattening to his head defiantly…. Wait-_WHAT_!? Fawn colored eyes snapped open, and as Ryou tried to jump to get to his feet, he landed roughly onto his side. He gawked as he examined what he assumed were a pair of white, fluffy paws where his hands used to be. _How in the world..?_ He felt something move behind him, and with what could only be described as a shocked squeaking noise, stared at the large, feathery tail that was tucking between his new legs in fear. "…Bakura, what did you do!?"

"_Me? I feel offended that you jump to the conclusion that this all is my fault, Landlord. I actually had nothing to do with it this time._"

"Then how am I-? Why am I a…?"

"_A cat?_" the Spirit answered, his tone holding the slightest hint of cruel amusement, "_I don't know. I don't remember what happened. I was in our-_"

"My."

"_-Spirit Room and I felt something was off. Before I could figure it out, though, I blacked out. I woke up with our body like…well this. I've been trying to wake you for ages now._"

After several failed attempts to get to his feet, and Bakura's harsh commentary ('_What, can't you even get to your feet without my help?_'), Ryou rolled over on a more comfortable position on his stomach, examining the area around him. It was a forest of some sort, certainly not any sort of scenery he had ever seen in Japan. It appeared to be the middle of the afternoon, the leaves just starting to grow back on the trees once more, and the flowers just beginning to bloom. As he continued to peer around with a confused expression, his eyes caught sight of something moving in the shrubbery near him. His snowy white pelt bristled in fright and shock as a small, pale yellow and black tom cat staggered into the clearing, the sound of crunching leaves and twigs behind him indicating that there were others not too far behind. Ryou's eyes widened as the tom caught sight of him lying in the dust, and just before he could ask Bakura to take control of their new body, he noticed the golden object that hung around the other cat's neck. But… that could only belong to-

"Y-Yuugi?"

Blue eyes widened as Yuugi recognized the Millennium Ring that still dangled from Ryou's fluffy neck. He stared in shock at the other before finally managing to catch his voice once more.

"R…you? You're here too!" the tom strode forward, leaning his head down to get a better look at the white feline on the ground next to him "Do you know how this happened? Did Bakura do this?"

"_Why do you people insist on putting the blame on me for this?_"

"No." Ryou shook his head gently, "he's just as confused as we are. Are the others here too?"

Just as the light golden tom opened his mouth to respond to the question, three others crashed through the shrubbery after Yuugi. All three of them panted heavily as they came to a halt, two of them falling into a heap on the ground.

First there was a large, well-muscled, sandy tom cat, which Ryou recognized to be Jounouchi by his exaggerated groans and complaints. Next to the blonde on the ground was another male cat; a brown tabby with dark amber eyes. After several moments of staring and racking his brain, he soon realized that this cat must have been Hiroto. Finally, there was a short-haired, dark brown she-cat with the palest blue eyes that he had ever seen. He instantly recognized her as Anzu: only she would be able to appear so beautiful as both a human and a cat.

"Yug'," Jounouchi groaned pitifully**, "**you… really need to… run _slower_!"

The small cat glanced at the blonde, flashing an apologetic smile his way. Yuugi sat on his haunches and looked at everyone in turn carefully, his eyes narrowing in a questioning and careful manner. The question came to everyone's mind; what should we do now? They were all at a loss at how or why this could every possibly happen, but then a thought crossed Ryou's mind.

"Shadi!" he blurted out, and everyone turned to look at him with a bit of a baffled expression on their faces' at the sudden outburst, "Err, maybe he had something to do with this? I mean, he's the only one who possesses the kind of power to do something like this..."

"Yeah, but why?" Tea frowned, "Why in the world would he want us to be _cats_? It's not like we can save any person like this!"

"_Perhaps you lot aren't meant to save people. Animals, on the other hand…_"

"What are you going on about now?" Ryou growled under his breath, his face wrinkling in annoyance, "That's nonsense. What could animals possibly need rescuing from?"

A small cough directed his attention away from the Spirit and back to his four friends. They were staring at him with worried expressions, all completely aware who he was talking to. The last time they had encountered Bakura, though, it almost cost them all their lives, not to mention the mental and physical suffering it had caused Ryou. He opened his mouth to explain himself and the idea, when a caterwaul sounded throughout the forest.

They all watched in shock as a white blur barreled into Yuugi's side, knocking the air out of the bewildered boy. Before they could assist their friend though, several more figures came bounding out of the brush, heading straight for the rest of the group.

Ryou scrambled backwards as a small grey tomcat came leaping towards him, its teeth bared in an ugly snarl. He ducked, just avoiding the violent mess of tooth and claw that threatened to tear right into his soft neck. The snow white tom crouched down to brace for another attack, and his claws unsheathed instinctively.

"Bakura, help!" he hissed fearfully, his tail bristling. His eyes began to droop as a sudden drowsy feeling came over him. In the back of his head, he heard a soft chuckle through the haze that gradually began to consume his mind.

"_If that is what you wish, Master. Now then, just rest…_"

The dawn colored eyes peeled back open, now holding a murderous glint. A grin split across Bakura's face as the once peaceful expression turned into that of a deadly one. It had been so long since he had any real fights, and he had been anticipating bloodshed for quite a while now- feline or not.

The grey cat soon recovered from his faltering, and lunged back at the prepared enemy. This time though, a white paw shot out across the kitten's face. It gave a startled cry as it faltered, stumbling to its paws. Before the ashy tom could brace for another attack, however, a heavy weight slammed into his side and shoved to the ground roughly. His eyes widened in panic as he felt a pressure on his lungs, a weak gasp escaping his lips. Claws dug lightly into his neck, and he peered up to see a cruel smirk looming above him. A cold shiver ran down his spine as he caught sight of the white cat's darkened expression, an immobilizing terror tearing at his heart.

"Enough!"

The battling cats all froze, looking up to see the commanding voice that had called out. A large ginger tom stood at where the attackers had come from, his green eyes hard as he stared at all of them. He said nothing more at first, and then motioned with his tail.

"ThunderClan, stop your attack at once. We have no need to be spilling so much blood without reason," he barked out. The fluffy, white tom that had begun the raid, scrambled to his paws.

"Without reason?" he argued in a defiant tone, "We were defending our territory, Firestar, just as the Code tells us to! And look at that one's collar; they must be a part of BloodClan!" He gestured to Bakura, who still had his claws digging into his prey's neck, the small tom squirming helplessly. His brown eyes glanced downwards at his Millennium Ring, realizing that it must appear to look like some sort of unusual collar to these cats. Of, if only they knew the truth.

The ginger tom was not having any back chat, though. His eyes narrowed and he gave a warning growl towards his 'followers'. Gradually, the attackers retreated back towards their leader with some insults and sulky glares. All except for the one that had soon stopped his struggles and now was mewling pitifully for his friends to help him. Firestar's head turned to focus on Bakura and the small grey tom, his expression unusually calm and at ease.

"I would be very grateful if you could release my apprentice," he said in a placid tone, "I really don't wish for him to be harmed, nor do I want to avenge the death of an innocent kit." The shaggy furred cat gave a harsh bark of laughter at this.

"Avenge him? Please, I could take any of you half-wits on without any trouble," he purred in amusement. Despite the threat, he released his hold on the young cat and watched with an almost disappointed look as he dashed over to his kind. A dusty brown tom glared at the causer of the kitten's injuries, gently nudging the smaller cat towards the bushes to most likely tend to his wounds. Bakura simply smiled after them, his claws still out and digging into the tender ground.

Firestar nodded, his gaze turning thankful. He took a step forward, not showing any sign that he wanted another fight. He instead bowed his head in greeting.

"I am Firestar, leader of ThunderClan. I apologize about my warriors attacking you so suddenly, but you must understand that we are… wary of trespassers here," There was a flicker of something unrecognizable in the leader's eyes as he finished his sentence. Yuugi stepped forward, and after closer examination, Bakura realized that it was actually the pharaoh. The golden tom dipped his head in return, his gaze holding a mixture of stern pride and respect towards Firestar.

"I'm Yuugi. My companions with me are Jounouchi, Hiroto, Anzu, and… Ryou," he hesitated as he motioned towards Bakura, his eyes narrowing as a silent warning towards the other. No trying anything, "I understand your circumstances. It's also partially our fault; we didn't realize anyone lived here. They only were acting out of defense."

"Stranger names," some cat muttered, "That one speaks oddly too."

'Like your names are any less stranger,' Bakura thought in annoyance, his tail lashing bitterly. Honestly, what kind of a name was 'Firestar' supposed to be?

"It's alright." The larger tom nodded, his gaze resting on the Millennium Puzzle. His expression faltered momentarily, something that looked like wonderment coming across his face. It only lasted a second though, and soon as it had changed, the poker face was on once more. "You all look like your wounds could use tending to. Come back to camp with the rest of us, we can get them dressed properly."

The pharaoh took no time in agreeing. He nodded his head, and gave a quick 'thank you'. His blue gaze turned towards the rest of his friends as they got to their paws to follow after the brooding bunch of ThunderClan cats. As Bakura started to trek after them, he couldn't help but wonder if these cats knew more about the Millennium Item's than he originally thought, and his cold gaze burned into the back of Firestar in dark astonishment.

**First of all, my apologies for being a bit lazy on this chapter! It is currently 1:25 in the morning, and Devii is quite the tired creature. Secondly, I decided to type up some quick descriptions of the YGO for you all before I post this, just for future reference. :'D **

**Yuugi- Tiny golden tom with black paws and tail, and blue eyes. **

**Jounouchi- Large pale tom with brown eyes.**

**Hiroto- Dark brown tom with deep amber eyes.**

**Anzu- Brown she-cat with pale blue eyes. **

**Ryou- Long haired white tom with pale brown eyes. **

**Anyways, i'm off to post this and then get some rest. ;u; Good night, all~ **


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